First War Series
by lovinMaya
Summary: A series of short fics that take place during the First War against Voldemort. Each of them center on a particular character. James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Lily, and more Order members struggle to find happiness in this whirlpool of love, tragedy, excitement, adventure, and friendship. Please read and review!
1. In the Midst of a War

**A/N:** This was the first fanfiction story I ever wrote and posted, and I did it a long time ago, but I didn't have any author notes or anything. It looked a little bit unprofessional, so I thought I'd add those.

I turned this into a sort of series about the First War. The stories do stand alone, but they live in the same universe, and they each star a different character. This one belongs to Sirius Black. I also have one starring James Potter, and one starring Peter Pettigrew. I am trying to write more, but I find myself blocked when it comes to the pre-books fanfics.

I hope you enjoy this!

~Maya

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><p><strong>First War Series: <strong>

**In the Midst of a War**

Four friends sat in the living room of Sirius Black's flat, laughing heartily in front of the fireplace and enjoying a rare free night. The flat was very small, with a living room, kitchen, and just one bedroom and bathroom, but in times like these, it felt much safer to have a home that one could monitor easily at all times. With very few windows and doors to lock, and no room for anyone or anything to hide, Sirius was able to feel moderately safe when he slept every night. Although everyday life was very chaotic, this flat was Sirius's haven, a place of sanctuary that no worry could penetrate, and it seemed to have become this for the rest of his friends as well. Lily, James, and Remus sat in a circle on the floor, in front of Muggle news with the volume down low so that their voices could be heard, but once every few seconds one of them glanced up at it and hoped they wouldn't see what they were all looking for. Everyone was looking for it these days. The mysterious disappearances that Muggle police could not figure out, but in hushed whispers were mourned by the Wizarding community. The silent massacres that were acknowledged only through pointed stares and minute nods for fear of being caught by _his_ people. Lately, it seemed to Sirius, that you could always tell wizard from Muggle based on the amount of fear in his eyes, the way he walked, calmly and nonchalantly or hunched over, clutching his coat tightly around his body. Muggles had it easier; ignorance truly was bliss. Unfortunately, if the murders and disappearances continued as such, that difference would no longer be so easy to spot.

Sirius reentered his living room with a few blankets, pillows, and drinks hovering in front of his raised wand, and stopped in his tracks, eyes fixed on the television. For a moment, the trio before him looked confused, but comprehension and dread dawned on their expressions and they, with a very reluctant air, turned to look at the screen as well.

"…and four people in London were reported dead in the same way that the other eight this month have been: dead in their beds, eyes wide open, no sign of any physical harm. Looks like a new type of killing on the rise here that our best still need to figure out. Be safe and be aware, folks. Let's have a moment to honor these four people…"

After so many, the names reached their ears in a buzzing sound. For the first few, they had listened attentively and quietly honored each and every person to themselves. After the sixth one, Lily had even shed a few tears, and, though he would never admit it, Sirius had leaked a few before sleeping that night. They were tears of sorrow, tears of fear. They were losing.

"I think that's enough of that for tonight," Remus said calmly, clicking the screen off. "Let's enjoy the rest of one of few nights we have together, shall we?" Sirius rolled his eyes. Always the sentimental one, Remus. Oddly enough, he was most sentimental, yet least emotional man Sirius knew.

Lily smiled. "Thanks. Actually," she said, smiling more widely, "James and I have some news for you both." James grinned and wrapped his arm around his wife. "We were actually hoping that Peter could be here," she continued, "and maybe some of the girls, but as it's impossible to get everyone around at this time, and in a few months' time you'd already know—"

"Oh, just say it already," Sirius cried, impatient. "You're pregnant!"

Lily laughed, looking slightly annoyed, but laughing all the same.

"I told you to say it fast, or else he'd spoil it for us!" James said, glaring at his best friend, as both Sirius and Remus exploded in congratulations.

"Well, you know me," Lily replied, still sporting a wide smile. "I get emotional and all. It is after all, a baby." She grinned at Sirius. "I think you better put my drink away now."

He shrugged. "Or I could just drink it."

"So," said Remus. "What are the details?"

"Oh, we don't know anything yet. We only just found out two weeks ago," Lily explained. "Only the Healer knows."

"The Healer?" said Sirius, leaning forward concernedly. "Did you take any measures to keep it secret?"

"No, but—"

"Lily! You _know_ that the hospitals are no longer safe! Anybody could discover!"

"Yes, but Sirius, it's a _baby_—"

"It doesn't matter to them. And anyway, it's your baby. _Your baby_, Lily. The baby of Lily and James Potter. The Death Eaters know you. Hell, some of them even know you personally, all the duels you've had." He turned his attention to James. "Mate, how could you be so careless?" Before James could respond, Lily suddenly burst into tears. Everyone stared, shocked.

"I-I-I didn't realize…oh, James, what have we done? A baby, a baby, in this world a baby, our baby, and we-we d-didn't even _think_ to-to- ohhh…" she blubbered.

"It's the hormones, or something. Pregnancy does this," James explained quietly to a panic-stricken Sirius.

Remus scooted forward towards Lily. "Shh, it'll be all right. This fear is illogical," he looked at Sirius, "in a few months you'd be showing very obviously. If anyone were to know, well, it would only be a short time earlier than they would've known inevitably. Not too difficult to deal with. Either way, it needs to be kept a good secret, only now, we have to pounce on it right away." Looking at James, he asked, "Should we contact Albus now, or should we wait until morning?"

James turned to Sirius. "How safe is this flat?"

"It's safe, mate."

"How safe, Sirius? This is my wife and my unborn child. I need an exact answer."

"I've got about twenty-seven protection spells, and those are just for Dark wizards. Would you like to hear the names?"

"Got it, thanks. No need for the mockery, Padfoot. You know this is important."

Sirius sighed. "Sorry, mate. I'm just nervous as hell. I don't generally get crying women in my flat, especially not ones I care about."

James set his jaw. "I think we should wait until morning. There's no need to upset Lily with more activity. She should get some rest, and then tomorrow we'll contact Dumbledore straight away." He moved toward his wife. "Lily, do you want to go into the bedroom, or should we all sleep out here?"

She sniffed. "Out here, please."

They laid out the sleeping bags and prepared for bed, talking only in low whispers. Sirius kept glancing at the door. It was fear like nothing else. Huddled together, each of them desperate to be anything but alone, their thoughts wandered to dark places. It was as if Death himself had his cloak hovering over the building, just waiting for the right moment to swoop down. The air was biting cold, and even with the flames in the jar by their bags, they all shivered. The three men focused on keeping Lily and the unborn baby warm. It gave them something to do that would take the mind away from the incessant fear.

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><p>It was about three in the morning. Lily gasped, sat up, and screamed. The door was blasted open.<p>

"GET IN HERE! GET IN HERE! IT'S THE ONES HE'S LOOKING FOR!" As two other masked men walked in, the first Death Eater turned his attention to four people on the floor. "DON'T MOVE OR WE'LL BLOW YOU UP!"

Just because they were Aurors didn't mean they had to fight. Then again, because they were Aurors, they knew _when_ to fight. "Please," Lily whispered. All eyes, except Sirius's, turned to her. "Please, I'm pregnant. Have a heart, please."

"Shut up, mudblood. I don't pity frailty." the Death Eater spat. "And that's why he wants you, bloody idiot." Her eyes widened; they hadn't expected that part. However, her purpose had been served, and the time was bought. In that moment, Lily had distracted the three men by the door, and Sirius was now throwing curse after curse in their direction.

"Bloody hell—" The Death Eaters began destroying every part of the flat they could. The four Aurors, however, were more than a match for the others. Within moments, two of the Death Eaters were on the floor, covered in blotchy red spots, howling in pain. Lily approached the last one, the one who had insulted her before they dueled. She pointed her wand directly at his mask, said, "Not so _frail_, now, am I?" and hissed out a curse that made the men wince. The Death Eater's feet seemed to slide out from under him as he flew into the air, banged against both walls, and fell to the floor in a crumpled heap. With a lazy flick of her wand, Lily bound all the three of the masked men, then turned to her friends.

"What should we do with them?" she asked. "Take them to the Ministry…" She faltered. They all had their doubts about the Ministry of Magic. In the past few months, there had been more break-ins into the Ministry and break-outs from Azkaban than there had been in the past ten years.

"No," Sirius said firmly. "The Order." He raised his wand to perform the charm, but was stopped by a high, cold voice entering the room.

"Oh, no, no, we mustn't interfere with the Dark Lord's plans, my dear Sirius." Sirius froze as three pairs of wide eyes turned to him. Then they heard the cackling laughter.

"Bellatrix," Sirius muttered lowly, his eyes darkening.

James, Lily, and Sirius were the best, most aggressive Aurors the Order had, and with Remus's sharp mind, they rarely failed. Before the twisted man outside Sirius's flat could even finish his sentence, all four of them had had their wands at the ready, each knowing which spell to use, and which spell the others would use. As Voldemort stepped into the room, Lily's flash of blue light set everything into place. Remus shot Reductor Curses at the doorframe and the ceiling directly above Voldemort, so as to blind his vision, even if only for a moment. Sirius's curse, the effect of which had them toppling backwards, enveloped Voldemort in a bubble-like figure, which prevented him from Apparating.

"GO! NOW!" he yelled to the others. James, in a last effort to hinder him, sent the sofa hurling towards him, and they all Disapparated. The last thing they heard was his scream of fury.

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><p>The shock they felt when they reached the Potters' house could have, if it had been a regular electrical shock, killed them all. The front door had been blasted open, and now lay in pieces in the living room, amidst all the other ruins the Death Eaters had left there. Stuffing from the sofa was scattered over the floor, and there were very large, gruesome holes in the wall. As a finishing touch, the Death Eaters had garnished the debris with the small chandelier that now coated the living room floor with glass. Sirius, it appeared, had been right on the spot; the Death Eaters did indeed have it in for Lily and James's baby. It was still a major confusion, however, as to why Voldemort would want their child. Only once before tonight had the two ever come face to face with Voldemort, and from what Dumbledore said, he never had much care for his Death Eaters' complaints, so it wouldn't matter if they had expressed their hatred of the Potters to their Dark Lord.<p>

"Dumbledore," Remus sputtered. "We have to go to Dumbledore." Dumbstruck and white-faced, Lily nodded in agreement. They took the Floo right into Dumbledore's office, and all began explaining at once.

"Albus, you have to—"

"Please, it's important—"

Dumbledore raised his hand and stared seriously at them. "What has happened?"

Sirius cleared his throat. "We were attacked. In my flat, sir. There were three Death Eaters, and we took care of them without much of a problem. After that, Voldemort and Bellatrix showed up." Dumbledore looked alarmed. "Not to worry, though, at least not too much, we took care of them too, but what's concerning us is something a Death Eater said." He looked hesitantly at Lily, and then back at Dumbledore. "He said Voldemort's after Lily because of her baby."

To their surprise, Dumbledore grimaced and sighed loudly. He did not speak for several moments, and when he did it was directly to Lily. "Firstly, congratulations to the both of you, I wish you and your child well. Secondly, this is a grave problem, expected, but grave nonetheless. We'll need to take protective measures immediately."

"But sir," Lily asked desperately, "Why would he be after me for my baby? What does this child mean to him? I don't understand…"

"All I can say on the matter is that it is very complicated," Dumbledore responded. Sirius scoffed rather conspicuously. Dumbledore turned to him. "Is something the matter, Sirius?"

"It's complicated," he replied sarcastically, glaring. "Albus, this concerns our lives. We deserve to know the truth."

"I'm very sorry, Sirius, but divulging the truth will endanger all of you."

"Endanger—what—what the bloody hell does that mean?" Sirius spluttered. "Albus we ARE in danger! Do you not understand? THESE ARE OUR LIVES! If you don't tell us—"

"Sirius is right, Albus," James said. "We need to know."

"James, I implore you to understand," Dumbledore said obstinately. "I cannot give you a complete answer. All I can say is that Voldemort appears convinced that your child, once grown, will eventually lead to his fall. Why he believes so, I cannot tell you."

"But—" Sirius insisted.

"Stop," Remus murmured. "He's told us what we need. The point is, Voldemort will stop at nothing, and we need to prepare our protections as soon as possible. Arguing will get us nowhere."

Sirius looked livid, but he held his tongue.

"Right," Dumbledore said, once he was sure Sirius would not interrupt. "I suggest you enter the Fidelius Charm. It's very complicated, and requires a Secret Keeper. You'll not need to decide now, but other protections, as many as possible, need to be placed immediately upon your houses. Now, for those I suggest…"

But Sirius was no longer paying attention. His flat, his safe haven that nothing could penetrate, now held memories that would haunt them for a long time. He felt a stress, a panic overtake him, a panic that perhaps this war was ending. Perhaps the Dark had won. Day after day, week after week, people were dying and disappearing, both Muggle and wizard, the Order's numbers were diminishing exponentially, and they had lost many of their best. For the last few years, Sirius had refused to give up, had insisted that they would win if they kept their morale up and their wits intact, but fear had gripped the wizarding world in a chokehold. His throat tightened as he began to consider the idea of dying, of losing his friends. _No_, he said to himself. _We'll make it. I will survive, and I will win. _He nodded unnoticeably, reassuring himself that everything would be all right. Time would tell, very soon, what a lie that was.

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><p><strong>AN:** Please leave me your thoughts! Also, if you have any ideas for other First War stories, let me know in the reviews:)


	2. Great Slayer of All Evil

**A/N: **I had originally uploaded this on Harry Potter's birthday as a standalone of this series, but because it got little feedback I thought I would just clump them together. I hope you enjoy this!

~Maya

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><p><strong>First War Series<strong>

**Great Slayer of All Evil**

With twenty or so curses flying through the air at a time, it wasn't long before James Potter found himself breathing ash. Almost everyone in the chaos was coughing and trying desperately to find a safe spot in the now wrecked house. They had staked out and raided a Death Eater meeting spot to find no less than ten cloaked men with admirable magical skills. At the moment, though, none of the Order members were admiring the Death Eaters' skills very much.

"Remus, come on, there's still seven of them and only five of us!" cried James. "We're going to have to send for backup!"

"Shut up, Prongs!" Remus responded. "There's no way in hell any one of us can leave for even a second! Not until we have at least two more down!"

"That is IMPOSSIBLE!" he yelled. "Peter! Go call for help! That's an order!"

Petrified, Peter glanced back and forth between Remus and James, and with a slight, frustrated nod from the former, he scurried from the room. Unfortunately, Remus had been right, and they felt the burden on them in mere moments. Fabian Prewett, another Order member fighting with them, groaned loudly at James.

"You just couldn't listen to Remus, could you?"

"Peter will be back in no time! Just try to take as many down as you can!"

He wished more than anything that Sirius was fighting on his side of the house, rather than holding the fort in the back. It was far too difficult doing missions without Lily. Her brain worked faster than everyone in the Order combined, and she and the four Marauders simply had a different level of communication with each other. True, James liked Fabian and found him easy to work with, but he never could really click with him. Finally, Peter came running back into the house with Gideon Prewett, Fabian's brother, and Arthur Weasley, their brother-in-law, following him.

Breathing a sigh of relief, James called, "Thanks, Wormy!" but Gideon pulled him aside, blocking curses effortlessly.

"Trouble back at Headquarters, go home. There's only six of 'em here now, send Sirius out here to the front and get Remus and Arthur in the back. We'll put Peter on lookout for both. We can handle it here. They need you. I'll send Sirius when two more are down. Now, GO!"

Before James could even open his mouth to ask what the emergency was, Gideon had shoved him out the back door and returned to cursing the Death Eaters. As he ran to tell his best friend the orders, James saw Gideon take one down and move on to the other in the blink of an eye.

"Sirius! Gideon wants you inside, and hurry! I've got to go back to Headquarters!"

"What?" yelled Sirius. "Why? We need you!"

"No you don't! Gideon has everything under control. And I've got no idea why, but you need to come after you get one down!" James waved at his friend frantically and Disapparated on the spot.

Returning to the Order Headquarters was extremely complex, and rightfully so. The Order of the Phoenix was a secret organization with carefully chosen members. If anyone other than the selected few were to know about the organization, all hell would break loose. There had been traces of other organizations similar to the Order in other Wizarding countries, but the moment they had been discovered, Voldemort and his Death Eaters stamped them out in the blink of an eye. James shoved through the bushes searching for the secret entrance as quietly as a terrified man could. Why would he be needed at Headquarters? If it were serious business, an emergency, Gideon would have easily been able to handle it. Gideon Prewett was one of the best in the Order, but he was rarely needed on stakeout missions such as the one James had just left. He was usually busy with his own missions, involving many more Death Eaters of higher powers. In fact, James had been almost certain that Gideon had had a mission to take on that very night. If they sent Gideon to take over his place, that meant whatever was happening at the Order Headquarters had something to do with James directly. And that drove painful worry down every shred of muscle he had.

It couldn't be Lily. There was no way it was Lily. She was safe in their flat, nowhere near Headquarters, so the emergency call couldn't have anything to do with her. James chanted this thought to himself incessantly, trying to soothe his nerves. Finally, his feet landed on the secret entrance in the shrubbery and he planted his heels, sinking downward slowly into the earth. Order Headquarters wasn't underground, only the entrance was. James thought it was a genius idea, and before he realized the seriousness of the war, he had a rush of giddy excitement every time he got to use the secret entrance.

He ran through the underground corridor and up the stairs into a house that was hidden to almost every being that passed it on the street. It was dimly lit, except for the meeting room and the two guest bedrooms. The members found that brighter light made thinking much easier during meetings, and for the people who needed to spend nights in the Headquarters, the bright guest bedrooms alleviated the overall gravity of the house.

Sound was coming from one of the guest bedrooms. Rather, it was exploding out of one of the bedrooms. Exploding in loud screams. Screams that sounded just like—

He gasped and nearly lost his footing. His wife was screaming in the guest bedroom. The adrenaline in his chest may have frozen over, but James managed to force his body to enter the room. In reaction to the sight he came upon, James could have easily fainted, but his already shocked state had made him numb to everything else.

There, in the bed, lay a beautiful red-haired and red-faced woman, screaming and groaning as a slightly older, also red-haired woman stroked her hand and shouted random words of reassurance.

"Come on, now, you can do this. It won't be long now. Alice will be back now with the ice, so it'll be a bit easier for you. All right, Lily, now, no more crying, you can do this," Molly Weasley encouraged.

"God, Molly, I have no idea how you managed to have _five_ of these!" Lily panted.

Chuckling, Molly responded, "Well, I've got the frame for it. And they're lovely boys. Perfect angels, quite easy to take care of. I'm sure it'll be the same for you."

"I can't even imagine having two of these one after another!" she groaned.

In a mother-like fashion, Molly patted her hand and smiled, and James saw how truly fit she was to take care of five little boys. The woman looked up and saw him standing white-faced in the door.

"Ah, James! Lily, darling, your husband is here! James, Lily just went into labor about three hours ago, yes, I do believe it's three hours now, and it'll be a couple more until she can start the delivery. Your wife is very fit, it's happening quite fast. Ah! Alice, there you are, dear."

Alice Longbottom, a brown-haired, small woman with a wrinkly smile came hurrying into the room. Just yesterday she had delivered a very large baby boy, and yet she was up on her feet helping a great deal with his wife's birth. James had always admired Alice's spirit and strength; though she looked frail, she was quite steady and serious, and extremely sharp.

"Hi, James," she said, drawing him into a one-armed hug as she handed an icepack to Molly, who then pressed it to Lily's forehead.

"Alice, hey. Is she all right?"

"Bloody Merlin, James!" Lily screeched. "You know you can ask me that question! God, Molly, why is it when men watch these things they get all jelly-legged?"

"She's saying 'God,'" he whispered to Alice. "She never says 'God' unless she's seriously stressed out."

"Damn right I don't!" his wife yelled. "So you better take me seriously!"

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, Lily! Is there anything I can do?" James threw his hands up in the air in surrender.

"Oh, no, dear, don't you worry about it. Just sit tight in the corner there. This is normal delivery behavior," Molly said in response.

Alice was laughing at him. He glared at her sourly.

"What?" she said. "This is funny. This reminds me of yesterday."

"Oh yeah," said James, his eyes softening. He hadn't seen the boy yet; Lily had had a false alarm. Neville, they had called him. "How is he? Where is he?"

"Oh, he's sleeping in the next room, the angel. He's with Molly's boys. All of them are fast asleep. I'd let you go in and see him, but I'm afraid Lily might murder you if you're not here every second." She smiled.

"Damn straight, I will!"

James blanched. "Yeah, that's okay. I'll see him after I've seen my own."

Alice smiled warmly. "Your baby is going to be beautiful."

"Alice…" James began hesitantly.

"Yeah?"

"We can't get a Healer? I mean, no offense to you and Molly, I'm sure you know what you're doing, but you can't be as good as a Healer. We don't even have to go to St. Mungo's. Just call a Healer. A trusted one."

Molly's cheery face turned solemn. Alice looked at her, then murmured, "You know Clarissa Meadows? Dorcas's cousin?"

Warily, James nodded.

"Well, three months ago, she delivered a baby. It wasn't even at St. Mungo's. It was with a Healer at home. A Healer and a mid-wife. They went through the whole process, too. She and her husband completely vetted the both of them, but the Healer still turned out fraud. Clarissa had the baby, they all gushed about how sweet the little girl was, and within an hour, the Healer, the mid-wife, and the baby were gone."

"Merlin," James breathed.

"Yeah, I know. That's why we can't trust any of them. Yesterday, it was just me and Molly. Don't worry, it'll be fine. We do know what we're doing. Especially Molly." She gave her a small smile.

Just then, Lily let out a shrill scream and Molly started, bustling to take care of her. As she cast her wand over Lily's body, murmuring spells to ease the pain, James noticed that Molly had gained weight slightly. 'At least someone has,' he thought darkly. For everyone, meals were growing scarcer and scarcer. Slowly, the war was eating up the country's resources, and people were growing poorer. Merely thinking about Molly and Arthur and how they could possibly raise five young boys drove a thrill of fear through James. Not for the first time, he felt immensely lucky that his parents had left him a nice sum of money before they'd passed the last year.

Hours went by. Lily's screeching had not intensified, but it had not gotten much better either. Every now and then, James would start at a particularly bloodcurdling scream, but other than that he was mostly zoned out. He wondered why Sirius wasn't there yet. He hoped the mission was going well.

As if he'd spoken that thought, James's best friend practically fell into the room.

"Did I miss it? Am I late?" cried Sirius.

"Not really, mate. It's been almost seven hours since she started. Me and Alice have just been taking turns fetching ice for her and water for Molly," James replied.

"Oh, bollocks," grumbled Lily.

"What?" James demanded, rushing to her side. "What is it?"

"Bloody Sirius in the room," she muttered.

"Er…yes he is?" said James confusedly.

"GET HIM OUT!"

Sirius threw a hand to his heart, feigning hurt. "But Lily! How can you deny Sirius Jr. the honor of meeting his godfather and namesake right as he enters the world? Ah, the blessed soul, coming into our dark world completely pure, a golden ball of sunshine opening itself into our hearts so tainted with—"

"SHUT UP!"

"Sorry, Lily. I'm going."

He grinned his classic grin and left the room, shoulders slumping out of sheer exhaustion. James turned tentatively to his wife.

"Erm, Lily?" he asked.

"What do you want?"

"Well…you see…would it be all right if I left for a minute? I just need to ask Sirius about the mission and if…if everything went okay." He braced himself for her explosion, but thankfully, she was too preoccupied with breathing correctly to really understand his question.

"Yeah, go ahead."

"Thanks, Lily. You're the best."

James followed Sirius out of the room and into the hall to find him sitting on a chair he seemed to have conjured.

"That…looks comfy. I want one." He drew his wand and swished it, only to conjure a hard, wooden chair. "Dammit. I can never do it like you."

"It's because you don't think luxuriously like I do, mate," Sirius laughed.

"Shut up. Sirius, was the mission okay?"

Sirius was silent for a moment. "Yeah, it was okay."

Breathing a sigh of relief, James clapped his friend on the back. Sirius winced.

"What's wrong?" asked James.

"Well, you see, I didn't come out of it too lucky." He winced again.

"And that means…?" James asked fearfully.

Contorting his face, Sirius pulled his shirt up over his head, revealing a dark, scorched burn across his back.

"Bloody hell."

"Yeah," he said grimly.

"I'll get Alice. She's better at Healing Charms than I am."

"Don't bother," Sirius responded bitterly. "It's dark magic. Gideon and Fabian tried everything. Remus, too."

"Well…did they at least contain it?" James queried hesitantly.

"Most of it, they said. I'll get it looked at by a Healer tomorrow."

"You can't," James replied instantly. "St. Mungo's has been infiltrated. Seriously infiltrated. We've got to stop sending our members there. I've got to put it in a memo or something."

"It's coming. IT'S COMING!"

James jumped up from his seat and ran into the other room. "What? Now? What do I do? How are we doing this? How are you doing this?"

"James, shut up," muttered Alice. "Just go tell Lily it's going to be okay."

As ordered, he hurried to his wife's side and grabbed her hand tightly. "It's going to be okay Lily. Just…erm…push?"

Molly suppressed a smile and Alice rolled her eyes. "Yeah, what he said."

"Come on, Lily. It'll be so easy from here. It'll happen in moments. You've just got to be strong, do you hear me? It's almost there," Molly yelled over Lily's screaming.

"OH MY GOD MOLLY GET IT OUT OF ME!" Lily bawled.

"It's almost there, Lily," Molly repeated.

"Yeah!" yelled James with slight uncertainty. "Almost there!"

"Oh, Lily, there's its head!" squealed Alice.

"Can I steal a glance there, Alice?" Sirius grinned.

"Oi!"

"James, Sirius, stop that!" Molly scolded. "Or get out!"

"Sorry, Molly," they replied in unison.

"Oh my goodness, Molly, it's coming, I need your help!" Alice called frantically. The two women reached under the blanket with arms and wands and, with one last screech from Lily, pulled a tiny creature out from under the sheet.

"Awww," they squealed together. "Oh, Lily, it's a boy!"

"A boy?" James repeated softly.

"A BOY!" shouted Sirius. "Now you can definitely call him Sirius Jr.!"

"I thought I told you to get out, Sirius," Lily muttered with a weak smile.

Molly brought the baby around the bed to present to his mother. "You did wonderfully, Lily," she said proudly.

"He's beautiful," James whispered as Lily took him into her arms.

"I told you so," Molly said, patting his arm.

"Hello, baby," Lily cooed softly. "Oh my God, James, look at him!"

"Yeah," murmured James, "he's amazing."

"What are you going to call him?" asked Alice from the corner. She had tears in her eyes.

"I…I don't know," James replied. "What do you think, Lil?"

"What about…Harry?"

James thought about it for a moment. Harry James Potter. Young Harry. Harry m'boy. Baby Harry. Harry Potter, the Great Slayer of All Evil.

"Yeah, Harry sounds great."

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><p><strong>AN:** Please leave me your thoughts!


	3. Wormtail

**A/N:** This is my part three! Enjoy!

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><p><strong>First War Series<strong>

**Wormtail**

He tried his hardest to help the Order. He really did. It wasn't easy living a double life, and even worse to live with the guilt. Whenever he gave away a member, Peter went to bed hoping that _his_ men didn't get to them. But they did, most of the time. It was about a month ago that the man stopped crying himself to sleep and became numb to everything. The Order and his friends probably noticed something different, but nobody said anything. The war was too intense. Every day people came into Headquarters looking grim; no one had smiled in over a year. Except Lily. Lily was always trying to find the brighter side of everything. She always made dinner and brought some to keep at Headquarters, always made something sweet for the group during meetings. Peter almost stuck it to them for her. But he didn't. Even lately, whenever she came around, smiling at him and giving him hugs like he belonged, Peter could never bring himself to stop feeding them all to them. To _him_.

Because he was just too damn scary. He was too powerful and he couldn't say no. If they killed him for this one day, and they probably would, he wouldn't blame them. Every time he felt the Mark burn on his left arm, he felt like crying. Still, Peter refused to completely accept it, to call himself what he was, a Death Eater. He didn't accept that the actions the other Death Eaters took might be his responsibility. He rejected the idea that any wrongdoings were his fault. He placed the blame anywhere but himself. Peter Pettigrew was dying a slow death of guilt and remorse.

When he ran into her, he was on his way to a Death Eater meeting. It was too remote to Apparate, and as Peter wasn't in the Inner Circle, he had no choice but to walk.

"Oh, Peter, hey!" said a tall, thin, brown-haired woman.

"Marlene," I said, distracted. "How's everything?"

"Oh, wonderful! I mean, not wonderful, obviously, but today's a good day! It's my gran's birthday today! We're having a party at my parents' place. I'm on my way there, in fact. Would you like to come?"

Marlene McKinnon was rarely cheery, and Peter found it quite odd to see her like this. Usually, she was a serious, strong fighter, one of the first to be chosen for missions. Even so, Marlene was very kind and friendly, and she was always there if anyone needed her. She was one of the only people in the Order, other than the Marauders and Lily, who Peter could call a friend. If he hadn't been in such a hurry, he'd have been quite glad to share a conversation with her. But the Dark Lord was so frightening if anyone, especially an unimportant informant like himself was tardy to a meeting.

"Look, sorry, Marlene, but I've really got to run. I've got, er, something pretty important to get to," he said hastily, and tried to move past her.

Unfortunately, she wasn't having it. With a wide grin on her face, she grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Oh, come on, Peter! The war is so, so serious, so just come and have a laugh and a good time for a night. My mum's making onion soup and mashed potatoes, and if I'm not wrong, there's going to be a massive cake afterwards." She smiled and wriggled her eyebrows.

"Listen, Marlene, if I don't make it, they're going to be really angry—"

"Who?" Marlene asked curiously. "I didn't know you were involved in anything. Is it a club of some sort?"

"Er—yeah, yeah it's a club. A book club!" he invented. "And we're reading er, Twelve Spouts of Butterbeer. You know, that new novel?"

"Oh yeah, I do know it…wait, where's your book then?" she asked, narrowing her eyes very slightly.

"Oh. Erm. I don't have it yet," he said lamely.

"Don't have it yet?" Marlene repeated, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah. Yeah, you see, we're just starting it. We're getting the books today. The club orders them, and we pay them the fee."

She stared, and then let him go, nodding. "All right, well, have fun, I suppose. And let me know if that book's any good, I'll see if I can read it."

"Thanks," he sighed, overwhelmingly relieved. "Let your gran know a happy birthday from me."

He pulled away quickly, but her fighter nails had dug into his sleeve, and she hadn't let go before he started moving. Peter's left sleeve was pulled from its seam, and came off into Marlene's hand.

"Oh, no, I'm sorry, Peter, I…oh my Merlin," she whispered, staring at his left arm. After a long moment, she looked up at him, eyes full of shock and anger. "You bastard. You're the informer."

Peter froze. He had no idea what to do. He could pull out his wand and curse her, but that would give him away. In truth, he was too scared to do that anyway.

"No! No, Marlene, I'm not," he lied. "Dumbledore. It's Dumbledore. Ask him. He made me spy on their side, I'm an informant, not an informer."

"Bloody liar," she hissed. Without another word, she turned on the spot and Disapparated with a loud crack. In a wild panic, Peter Disapparated as well, desperately trying to make it to the Death Eater meeting before Marlene made it to Order Headquarters. By doing so, he managed to arrive not far from the meeting, but Splinched himself in the process. Still panicking and now sporting a bloody leg, Peter limped as fast as he could through the doors, shouting a password at the gate.

"You're late, Wormtail," said Lucius Malfoy coldly. He cringed at the use of his Hogwarts nickname. Or maybe it was due to the blood gushing out of his leg.

"No time!" he shouted. "Curse me later! She knows! She knows what I am! She knows I'm informing on the Order!"

"What?" Malfoy growled. "Who? Who knows?"

"Mar…Marlene McKinnon," he gasped. "She was headed for her parents' house when I ran into her, but she might have gone to Headquarters instead. If you try to catch her before she gets to Headquarters, and I think you still can, just go to Mulberry Square a little south of town, and you might head her off. Try her home too; her parents live in the Wizarding village Stonesfall. Their mailbox says McKinnon."

"Well, Peter," Malfoy said with a smirk as Death Eaters began to Disapparate. "You seem to be much more on top of things at the moment than you usually are. Maybe we should make you bleed like that more often." With that, he Disapparated, leaving Peter alone in the dark hall.

And that was it. For many months now, Peter had been trying to make himself believe that he was truly an Order member, and that this "side job" would end soon enough. But this was it. This was the first time he had informed on someone close to him, a friend. Every other time it had just been random Order members with whom he shared no relationship, and his conscience flinched only the slightest when he heard about their deaths. This time, however, as he sat against the stone wall and sobbed violently, it was different. This time, when he heard about Marlene's death, he would not look anyone in the eye, they would pass it for grief, they'd know that Marlene was a friend of Peter's, they wouldn't blame him. But he would be bathing in a hot bath of blame. He would cry himself to sleep again, for who knew how long.

"Please don't forgive me," he whispered. "Please don't forgive me."

Why had he done it? He should have just died; this was not far from it. The smartest thing to do would have been to just not tell the Death Eaters about his encounter with Marlene. Then, they would have found out from someone else, and killed him. But no, the Order would have known first, and Peter would have had to live and die with the shame. He was a coward, he knew it.

Peter banged his head against the stone wall several times, praying the impact would kill him, but he never hit it strongly enough. Too much of a coward to end his own life, he thought bitterly. Soon, the Death Eaters would be back, present him with Marlene's blood on his hands, and Peter would have to face his true colors. He would have to see his true face, the face of a rat.

Wormtail, they had called him. It was a name of deep meaning, a name of friendship, a name that tied him to his best friends forever. Today, it was a name of betrayal and dirt, a name that disgusted him. A name that fit him better than anything else.

There was sound coming from outside. With trembling fingers, Peter raised his wand and muttered a calming charm. Instantly, the tears were gone and the shaking had stopped, right as three Death Eaters, including Lucius Malfoy walked into the room.

"Congratulations, Wormtail," he drawled, leering at him. "Because of you, we eliminated a powerful member of the Order. The Dark Lord is most pleased." Malfoy raised his wand and pointed it at Peter's leg. In a moment, the broken leg was repaired and the bleeding stopped.

"Wh-where did you find her?" Peter asked quietly.

"Not at the Order, unfortunately. She's rather a stupid witch, isn't she?" Peter flinched. "Any smart person would alert the headquarters if they knew who the informer was. But no, this stupid woman went straight to her _family_." No. No, it couldn't be. "So we got her, and her whole family. This should definitely lower the Order's morale. We'll tear them apart, and then we'll win." finished Malfoy.

Peter tried to smile, but it looked like a grimace. Thankfully, Malfoy didn't notice. The other Death Eaters left the room, and, after what seemed like hours, so did Peter. Completely numb to his surroundings, he trudged back to the Order Headquarters in a sort of drunken state. When he arrived, it looked like the meeting had started. Marlene was, of course, missing.

"Her whole family?" whispered Lily.

Mad-Eye Moody nodded gravely. "Everyone. Merlin himself probably doesn't know how they found her."

"It was the informer," Gideon Prewett said angrily.

"Stop," said James. "We don't know that there is an informer in the Order."

Yes we do, thought Peter helplessly.

"Yes we do!" yelled Gideon. "Bloody hell, James, your schoolboy loyalty and pride is admirable only to a certain point! Now it's just plain stupid. You hear me?"

"Shut up, Prewett! The only thing that can keep us together _is_ that 'schoolboy loyalty.' If we don't have that, then they've won! They've torn us apart."

Yes. Yes they have. Peter sank into a chair, hearing Malfoy's words ringing in his ear. He buried his face in his hands, and if not for the calming charm, would have relapsed into sobs.

Please don't forgive me, he thought in his head. For a moment, he wanted to whisper them aloud, but was too afraid someone may hear. Too afraid. That was his whole story. That was his whole story, and it would never end. He would always, always be too afraid. He would always be Wormtail.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I hope you liked it! It was difficult for me to write because, personally, I always found Peter Pettigrew to be a character I could never pity, and I tried to write him into a pitiable character. In this story, I still don't feel sorry for him, because I don't usually have sympathy for cowards, but the point is I always imagined him to be a little bitter about always being shunted to the side and never feeling special, and a little resentful and vindictive because of that. I was considering writing another one, out of the First War Series about that kind of Peter character, so let me know if you'd like that!

~Maya


	4. Weddings and News

**A/N:** I thought this was necessary. Just a reminder, these chapters don't necessarily have to be in order of events. Also, I do plan to end this, just not any time soon!

~Maya

* * *

><p><strong>First War Series<strong>

**Weddings and News**

The door crashed open to reveal a very flustered Lily Potter, hopping on one foot as she tried to squeeze her other into a glossy pink shoe.

"I'm sorry! Merlin, I'm sorry! I got held up at—" But Lily stopped short, for the beautiful woman in front of her temporarily rid her of the ability to speak.

All the light in the room seemed to be coming from Alice Fortescue, who was absolutely glowing. At the moment, however, her bridal smile had been replaced by a dirty look directed at Lily.

"Bitch," she grumbled teasingly. "Can't even show up to the wedding on time. Some bridesmaid you are."

"Technically, it's not the wedding yet," Lily pointed out with a smile. "And maybe if you'd made me the Maid of Honor I'd take my responsibilities more seriously."

"Showing up late on the big day without even having that many responsibilities? Pfft, like I'd even think of asking more of you," scoffed Alice, returning to the mirror.

Lily laughed. "You look beautiful, Alice."

The giddy smile returned to Alice's face. "I know, right?" she giggled. "You're a vision, too."

"Not nearly as much as you."

"Can you two bloody stop!" cried Mary McDonald, the Maid of Honor, in frustration. "I need Alice to not move if I'm going to finish this makeup spell without turning her into a clown."

"All right, all right, Mary. I'll shut up," said Lily, grinning. "Alice, d'you need me to fit your dress better?"

"My dress doesn't fit right?" Alice screeched, jumping ten feet in the air.

"GODDAMMIT, ALICE!"

Alice's sudden movement had resulted in several red streaks of makeup across her face. Everyone in the room burst into laughter as Mary, cursing, began makeup removal spells on Alice's face.

"No, it looks good," said Lily. It really did. The white dress fell to her ankles and seemed to float elegantly on her body, baring her Cinderella slippers. It did perfect justice to Alice's short, lean figure, and allowed her to show off her best features with class. Lily remembered her own wedding day a few months prior; she'd worn a flouncy white sundress that seemed to hang casually on her body from the straps, with the sand from the beach squeezing itself between her bare toes. It most certainly had not been as classic as Alice's wedding, but Lily could not remember a moment when she had felt more beautiful.

* * *

><p>"<em>You look perfect, Lily," said Mary, eyeing her up and down. <em>

"_Thanks," she breathed. "You look great, too. I definitely picked the right bridesmaid wardrobe."_

_Mary's dress was a gentle, pale blue, longer than Lily's and more fitted. She was wearing white shoes and had matched with it a thin chain with a single pearl dangling from it for her neck. _

"_Thank you," Mary smiled. "The guests are all here. Alice is ushering in the last few. It's almost time."_

_Lily's heart swelled and her stomach fluttered. Within moments, she would walk out into the warm afternoon, face the horizon, and promise to reach for it with the man next to her._

"_I just wish Mum and Dad could've lived to see this," she murmured sadly to herself. With a pang, she thought of her sister, who at this moment might be watering her precious begonias in some square house in Surrey, waiting until the evening when her husband would come home. As far as Petunia was concerned, Lily was no more than that distant relative in a mental ward no one liked to speak of._

"_Where's your Maid—sorry, Man—of Honor?" said Mary, glancing around the empty room._

"_Groom needed him," Lily replied, amused. "No surprises there."_

* * *

><p>"Have you seen Frank? Or Gideon?" Lily asked Mary.<p>

"Not the groom. Best man? Saw him an hour ago," Mary replied tersely, now touching up Alice's curls with her wand.

"Is he doing all right?" she said in a low voice, while one of the other bridesmaids distracted Alice.

At this, Mary looked up quickly. There had recently been news that the Prewetts' father had been captured and killed because of his sons' involvement with the Order of the Phoenix. News like this made Lily feel relieved that her parents had died peacefully, and that her sister was out of even her own reach, let alone the Death Eaters'. "I think so," Mary murmured. "Got some new nephews to distract him, though, hasn't he?"

Smiling slightly, Lily nodded. "This is what? Molly's third time?"

"Fourth," she corrected, smiling back. "Or fourth and fifth, depending on how you look at it."

"Twins," said Lily, shaking her head in awe. "I can't believe it."

"Have you seen them?" Alice put in. "They're just lovely."

"I'm sure they are," said Lily. "I've seen the others. Three amazing looking boys, all redheads, all smiling. That Bill's turning into quite the looker, isn't he?"

"Oh yes," Mary agreed, smiling broadly. "He's going to be married to some beautiful, glamorous woman one day."

"Yes, yes," said Alice in mock impatience, "but can we focus on the beautiful, glamorous woman of _today_?"

Laughing, the women turned back to the bride.

"Frank's going to piss his pants when he sees you," teased Catalina Fortescue, one of Alice's cousins.

"Shut up," said Alice, smacking her arm.

"Frank's going to love you, Alice," Lily reassured her, rolling her eyes at Catalina. Clearly, Catalina Fortescue had never been married, or she would know that a girl sitting in Alice's place would most certainly quail at any thought of the man at the altar freaking out.

When Lily had been waiting in the kitchen of the beach house, looking out the window at the congregation that had gathered, she'd nearly fallen apart.

* * *

><p>"<em>What if he loses it? What if he gets cold feet?" Lily demanded, pacing around the room.<em>

_By her side was her absolute best friend, her Man of Honor, Remus Lupin, who was patiently allowing her to inflict her bridal tension on him._

"_He won't, Lily," said Remus. "Trust me."_

"_How can you know that?"_

"_I'm his best friend," he reminded her. "And he's mine. I know that he's never loved another woman as much as he loves you."_

_Sighing, she plopped herself down onto a wooden chair and let her head fall onto the kitchen table. "Remus, we're in the middle of a war," she said in a small voice. "I know it's only beginning, but I can't help but think about it."_

_For a moment, the two were silent, and then Remus pulled his chair closer to Lily's and wrapped his arms tightly around her._

"_Lily," he began in a low voice, "you're about to go out there and marry a man who's going to love you for the rest of his life and beyond that. And you're going to do the same with him. I can't promise you that you'll grow old together and have lots of babies and we'll always come 'round once a year for a big family gathering, but I can promise that you'll have a happy ending with James."_

_Lily looked up at him, a mixture of fear and hope in her face. "You mean that?"_

"_I do," he said, squeezing her shoulders._

_The door creaked open, and Mary poked her head in. "It's time," she whispered._

* * *

><p>There was a knock at the door, and in came Fabian Prewett, brother of the best man.<p>

"Bloody hell," he chortled, taking in the sight. "I just felt the estrogen level in this building shoot up."

"Are you here for a reason, Fabian?" said Alice, irritated.

"Sorry," he muttered, still smiling. "Just to tell you it's time to go out there."

Instantly, Alice paled and began hyperventilating.

"Whoa!" cried Fabian, throwing his hands up. "Do I need to call for a Healer? I'm not sure how Frank would feel about his bride having a nervous breakdown upon hearing that it's time to go and promise to spend the rest of her life with him."

"Shut up, Fabian!" Lily snapped.

Mary was rubbing Alice's back soothingly, murmuring soft encouragements.

"Okay, okay, I was joking!" said Fabian. "Look, Alice, really. The only thing you need to worry about is Frank missing when he tries to kiss you. Seriously, the man is wild about you. He's not even nervous right now. Pull it together, because you're going to be happy for the rest of your life after today, no matter what happens."

His words seemed to sedate her, and she stood up shakily, but with a smile nevertheless.

"I guess you're right," she said apologetically, taking his arm.

Fabian merely grinned, and gestured for the bridesmaids to lead the way out the door. Lily stepped onto the runway carpet and was instantly overwhelmed by the swell of a string quartet and the smell of peonies floating in the air. As she gazed around at the guests, she spotted her husband up in the front, looking back and grinning at her, his hair mussed up as usual and glasses lopsided. Beside him sat his elegantly handsome best friend. Sirius Black, rather than looking back at the bride's entrance like everyone else was, stared up at the front at a beaming Frank Longbottom. And when Lily turned her eyes on him, she slipped back to her own walk down the aisle.

* * *

><p><em>She had refused to be given away. Lily had always believed firmly that she was her own person, no one's to give away. Her vision blocked slightly by the sheer veil that fell just below her eyes, she made her way down the aisle of sand between the rows of guests. There was no music, only the sound of the ocean waves gently lapping at the shore and seagulls cawing above. The salty ocean smell drifted around her as the wind caressed the straight red locks that framed her face. <em>

_A murmur of awe rippled through the small gathering of loved ones, and it filled her heart with happiness. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the pointed hat of Albus Dumbledore and the grisly face that could only be Mad-Eye Moody's. On the other side there were Benjy Fenwick, Marlene McKinnon, and even Molly and Arthur Weasley had come. But she only had eyes for the man before her, standing, grinning broadly, at the altar._

* * *

><p>At this moment, there could not have been a happier man in the world. Shining with happiness in his brand new tuxedo, Frank beamed at Lily as she passed him to take her place at the altar, and she smiled back warmly. Looking down at the guests once more, Lily caught her husband's eye again.<p>

Grinning, James mouthed, "You look beautiful."

She smiled at him and nodded her thanks.

Then, Sirius nudged him, looked up at Lily and mouthed, "Better than the bride."

Unable to help herself, Lily rolled her eyes. Those boys would never change. As the bridesmaids settled into their places the music started a different tune, and everyone turned back to watch the entrance excitedly. Finally, the door swung open and there emerged the most beautiful thing Lily had ever seen.

On the arm of the tall, handsome Fabian Prewett, Alice Fortescue was magnificent, and her beauty fell like gentle raindrops on the people around her. The entire room seemed to hold its breath as she walked gracefully down the aisle. She had a shy smile on her face, and her eyes were fixed on Frank. She was shaking very slightly, but Fabian's strong build steadied her, and it was almost unnoticeable. Lily noticed him murmuring words of encouragement through his broad smile, and chortled under her breath.

Shyly but breathtakingly, Alice took her place in front of the teary groom, who whispered so softly that Lily almost didn't catch it, "I love you. You're perfect."

* * *

><p><em>Lily stood before the man she was about to marry, drinking in his appearance. James was clad in a black tuxedo, complete with bow-tie and boutonniere. His hair looked as though he had taken extra time to muss it up, but she knew that hours must have gone into the frantic and frustrating attempt of getting it to lie flat, thus resulting in an extra-messy look. He was smiling widely, eyes sparkling, and immediately every fear that he would get cold feet was banished from Lily's mind. He looked perfect.<em>

_When she stood before him, he presented her with the most dazzling smile she'd ever seen him wear, one that made her go weak at the knees._

_The ceremony and the vows had most certainly been beautiful, but Lily had only just stumbled through it, waiting for the part where she could take James to be hers forever._

_James pulled out of the kiss, cocked an eyebrow mischievously, and whispered in her ear, "I want to ravage you right here on the beach."_

_Letting out a not-so-surprised laugh, she rolled her eyes and whispered back, "Only if you let me take off the tux."_

_He threw his head back and laughed, letting her out of his embrace. "Merlin, woman, I love you."_

"_I love you, too."_

* * *

><p>As she watched Alice dance with Frank in the middle of the ballroom floor, Lily found herself stepping closer to the man she was dancing with. James smiled down warmly at her and let his hands wrap more tightly around her waist.<p>

"They are so perfect for each other, aren't they?" she said.

"Couldn't agree more," said James.

"I'm really glad they did this," she said quietly. The war had been preventing normal lifestyles all through the Wizarding world and especially in the Order of the Phoenix. Alice and Frank getting married would give them all some much-needed hope.

"Well, they are in the Order," James murmured.

She cocked an eyebrow inquisitively.

"Only the bravest of the brave can be in the Order without cracking," he explained. "Getting married during this time is much braver than going out to fight Death Eaters or spying for Dumbledore. Alice and Frank are…the bravest of the brave."

Lily nodded. Then, teasingly, she leaned in and whispered, "_We_ got married during this time."

James scoffed and kissed her playfully. "We're already the bravest of the brave. Everyone knows that," he replied proudly.

Laughing, Lily gazed up at the man she married, her soul mate, her James, with intense love and fondness. There were moments when she simply couldn't believe how it had all worked out; a few years ago, she and James could barely be in a room together without starting some kind of fight. Now, they couldn't even imagine life without each other.

"So was she mad at you for being late?" said James teasingly.

Lily shook her head. "She was too happy to be."

"Did you tell her the news?" he asked in hushed tones.

"No," she admitted. "Today's her day. And besides, I wanted to tell the boys first."

With a broad grin, James nodded in agreement. "I can't wait to tell them."

* * *

><p>Two weeks later, a happily married Alice Longbottom was holding her wand nervously to her abdomen with her husband by her side. He was squeezing her hand tightly and had his eyes shut; his face was expressionless.<p>

"So if it glows red, it means…"

"I'm pregnant," Alice finished.

"Right," he breathed.

"No, Frank," she said, her voice quaking. "I'm pregnant."

Frank's eyes flew open and snapped to his wife's wand, which was emitting a faint, red glow.

"Merlin," he whispered.

"Merlin?" she teased. "You want to name our kid 'Merlin?' I don't think that's going to work. Especially not if it's a girl."

Laughing in sheer disbelief, he hugged her around the waist.

"A baby," he sighed happily.

"A baby," she repeated, looking up at Frank and then down at her belly. With a small smile, she realized she was looking at the life they'd made for themselves. And she couldn't be happier with it.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** I really hope you enjoyed that! I had originally intended it to be about Alice, but as I was writing it, it started to become Lily's story. I thought the moment in the end captured a part of Alice's and Frank's relationship nicely. If I get any inspiration, I will write one about Alice and/or Frank. Please, please leave your thoughts!

~Maya


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